I'm not entirely sure. Gnostics believe the physical universe is intrinsically evil, yet also believe in a hidden higher power.

It just seems sort of baseless. Why would we be part of a fundamentally evil universe, while our true creator hides and tells us to view our reality as vane? Now, I DO agree with their more spiritual outlook on religion. I personally believe the formalities of religions are mostly superfluous. It's faith that matters, not the amount of time someone goes to church. Knowledge is what faith is built on, despite what many Bible-thumpers will have you believe. I'll explain:

If you study how the universe operates, you will inevitably hit a dead-end. What created everything? Nobody knows, yet if you take a chance, and try to connect with God, you'll have an epiphany. You just KNOW he is real, because he enables you to see through lies and deception. He is holding out his hand, and one only needs to take it. Doing this takes humility and wisdom (which is why it took me so long ?). It is then our duty to spread God's truth. Everyone is an individual, and will worship God in their own way. If you're more science-minded, God can be referred to as the "Source", which is the origin of ALL quantum particles/waves (which make up ALL of creation, including us).

I digress...

I feel Gnosticism is a slippery slope into Puritanism, which essentially teaches that you aren't supposed to enjoy any aspect of life. They believe you are meant to SURVIVE for God, while avoiding all forms of debauchery. Seems like a pretty sad existence to me...

All that said, Gnostics have the largest collection of real Jesus quotes on the planet, and I do appreciate their perspective.

Perosnaly, I've taken the elements from various schools of thought, and merged them into what feels right for me. For example, why do I need to go to church every week, or recite prayers in old English if God is omnipotent? I'd rather just speak to him like my father. After all, we are all his children, and he knows EVERYTHING about us. I'm not going to insult him by pretending to believe in certain dogma, just because it has become mainstream.

I'm not entirely sure. Gnostics believe the physical universe is intrinsically evil, yet also believe in a hidden higher power.

It just seems sort of baseless. Why would we be part of a fundamentally evil universe, while our true creator hides and tells us to view our reality as vane? Now, I DO agree with their more spiritual outlook on religion. I personally believe the formalities of religions are mostly superfluous. It's faith that matters, not the amount of time someone goes to church. Knowledge is what faith is built on, despite what many Bible-thumper will have you believe. I'll explain: if you study how the universe operates, you will inevitably hit a dead-end. What created everything? Nobody knows, yet if you take a chance, and try to connect with God, you'll have an epiphany. You just KNOW he is real, because he enables you to see through lies and deception. He is holding out his hand, and one only needs to take it. Doing this takes humility and wisdom (which is why it took me so long ?). It is then our duty to spread God's truth. Everyone is an individual, and will worship God in their own way. If you're more science-minded, God can be referred to as the "Source", which is the origin of ALL quantum particles/waves (which make up ALL of creation, including us).

I digress...

I feel Gnosticism is a slippery slope into Puritanism, which essentially teaches that you aren't supposed to enjoy any aspect of life. They believe you are meant to SURVIVE for God, while avoiding all forms of debauchery. Seems like a pretty sad existence to me...

All that said, Gnostics have the largest collection of real Jesus quotes on the planet, and I do appreciate their perspective.

Perosnaly, I've taken the elements from various schools of thought, and merged them into what feels right for me. For example, why do I need to go to church every week, or recite prayers in old English if God is omnipotent? I'd rather just speak to him like my father. After all, we are all his children, and he knows EVERYTHING about us. I'm not going to insult him by pretending to believe in certain dogma, just because it has become mainstream.

I'm not entirely sure. Gnostics believe the physical universe is intrinsically evil, yet also believe in a hidden higher power.

It just seems sort of baseless. Why would we be part of a fundamentally evil universe, while our true creator hides and tells us to view our reality as vane? Now, I DO agree with their more spiritual outlook on religion. I personally believe the formalities of religions are mostly superfluous. It's faith and knowledge that matter, not the amount of time someone goes to church. PRAYER MATTERS!

Also, Gnosticism is a slippery slope into Puritanism, which essentially teaches that you aren't supposed to enjoy any aspect of life. They believed you are meant to SURVIVE for God, while avoiding all forms of debauchery. Seems like a pretty sad existence to me.

That said, Gnostics have the largest collection of real Jesus quotes on the planet, and I do appreciate their perspective.

Personaly, I've taken the elements from various schools of thought, and merged them into what feels right for me. For example, why do I need to go to church every week, or recite prayers in old English if God is omnipotent? I'd rather just speak to him like my father. After all, we are all his children, and he knows EVERYTHING about us. I'm not going to insult him by pretending to believe in certain dogma, just because it has become mainstream.

I'm not entirely sure. Gnostics believe the physical universe is intrinsically evil, yet also believe in a hidden higher power.

It just seems sort of baseless. Why would we be part of a fundamentally evil universe, while our true creator hides and tells us to view our reality as vane? Now, I DO agree with their more spiritual outlook on religion. I personally believe the formalities of religions are mostly superfluous. It's faith and knowledge that matter, not the amount of time someone goes to church. PRAYER MATTERS!

Also, Gnosticism is a slippery slope into Puritanism, which essentially teaches that you aren't supposed to enjoy any aspect of life. They believed you are meant to SURVIVE for God, while avoiding all forms of debauchery. Seems like a pretty sad existence to me.

That said, Gnostics have the largest collection of real Jesus quotes on the planet, and I do appreciate their perspective.

Perosnaly, I've taken the elements from various schools of thought, and merged them into what feels right for me. For example, why do I need to go to church every week, or recite prayers in old English if God is omnipotent? I'd rather just speak to him like my father. After all, we are all his children, and he knows EVERYTHING about us. I'm not going to insult him by pretending to believe in certain dogma, just because it has become mainstream.

I'm not entirely sure. Gnostics believe the physical universe is intrinsically evil, yet also believe in a hidden higher power (God).

It just seems sort of baseless. Why would we be part of a fundamentally evil universe, while our true creator hides and tells us to view our reality as vane? Now, I DO agree with their more spiritual outlook on religion. I personally believe the formalities of religions are mostly superfluous. It's faith and knowledge that matter, not the amount of time someone goes to church. PRAYER MATTERS (doesn't even have to be formal)!

Also, Gnosticism is a slippery slope into Puritanism, which essentially teaches that you aren't supposed to enjoy any aspect of life. They believed you are meant to SURVIVE for God, while avoiding all forms of debauchery. Seems like a pretty sad existence to me.

That said, Gnostics have the largest collection of real Jesus quotes on the planet, and I do appreciate their perspective.

Perosnaly, I've taken the elements from various schools of thought, and merged them into what feels right for me. For example, why do I need to go to church every week, or recite prayers in old English if God is omnipotent? I'd rather just speak to him like my father. After all, we are all his children, and he knows EVERYTHING about us. I'm not going to insult him by pretending to believe in certain dogma, just because it has become mainstream.

I'm not entirely sure. Gnostics believe the physical universe is intrinsically evil, yet also believe in a hidden higher power.

It just seems sort of baseless. Why would we be part of a fundamentally evil universe, while our true creator hides and tells us to view our reality as vane? Now, I DO agree with their more spiritual outlook on religion. I personally believe the formalities of religions are mostly superfluous. It's faith and knowledge that matter, not the amount of time someone goes to church. PRAYER MATTERS (doesn't even have to be formal)!

Also, Gnosticism is a slippery slope into Puritanism, which essentially teaches that you aren't supposed to enjoy any aspect of life. They believed you are meant to SURVIVE for God, while avoiding all forms of debauchery. Seems like a pretty sad existence to me.

That said, Gnostics have the largest collection of real Jesus quotes on the planet, and I do appreciate their perspective.

Perosnaly, I've taken the elements from various schools of thought, and merged them into what feels right for me. For example, why do I need to go to church every week, or recite prayers in old English if God is omnipotent? I'd rather just speak to him like my father. After all, we are all his children, and he knows EVERYTHING about us. I'm not going to insult him by pretending to believe in certain dogma, just because it has become mainstream.

I'm not entirely sure. Gnostics believe the physical universe is intrinsically evil, yet also believe in a hidden higher power.

It just seems sort of baseless. Why would we be part of a fundamentally evil universe, while our true creator hides and tells us to view our reality as vane? Now, I DO agree with their more spiritual outlook on religion. I personally believe the formalities of religions are mostly superfluous. It's faith and knowledge that matter, not the amount of time someone goes to church. PRAYER MATTERS (doesn't even have to be formal)!

Also, Gnosticism is a slippery slope into Puritanism, which essentially teaches that you aren't supposed to enjoy any aspect of life. They believed you are meant to SURVIVE for God, while avoiding all forms of debauchery. Seems like a pretty sad existence to me.

That said, Gnostics have the largest collection of real Jesus quotes on the planet, and I do appreciate their perspective.

Perosnaly, I've taken the elements from various schools of thought, and merged them into what feels right for me. For example, why am I going to go to church every week, or use a Rosary if God is omnipotent? I'd rather just speak to him like a father. After all, we are all his children, and he knows EVERYTHING about us. I'm not going to insult him by pretending to believe in certain dogma, just because it has become mainstream.

I'm not entirely sure. Gnostics believe the physical universe is intrinsically evil, yet also believe in a hidden higher power.

It just seems sort of baseless. Why would we be part of a fundamentally evil universe, while our true creator hides and tells us to view our reality as vane? Now, I DO agree with their more spiritual outlook on religion. I personally believe the formalities of religions are mostly superfluous. It's faith and knowledge that matter, not the amount of time someone goes to church. PRAYER MATTERS (doesn't even have to be formal)!

Also, Gnosticism is a slippery slope into Puritanism, which essentially teaches that you aren't supposed to enjoy any aspect of life. They believed you are meant to SURVIVE for God, while avoiding all forms of debauchery. Seems like a pretty sad existence to me.

That said, Gnostics have the largest collection of real Jesus quotes on the planet, and I do appreciate their perspective.

I'm not entirely sure. Gnostic believe the physical universe is intrinsically evil, yet they also believe in a hidden higher power.

It just seems sort of baseless. Why would we be part of a fundamentally evil universe, while our true creator hides? I DO agree with their more spiritual outlook on faith. The formalities of religions are superfluous. It's faith and knowledge that matter, not the amount of time someone goes to church.

Also, it's a slippery slope into Puritanism, which essentially taught that you aren't supposed to enjoy any aspect of life. They believed you are meant to SURVIVE for God, while avoiding all forms of debauchery.

That said, the original Gnostics had the largest collection of true Jesus quotes on the planet.

I'm not entirely sure. Gnostic believe the physical world is intrinsically evil, yet believe in a higher power that is hidden.

It just seems sort of baseless. Why would we be part of a fundamentally evil universe, while our true creator hides?

Also, it's a slippery slope into Puritanism, which essentially taught that you aren't supposed to enjoy any aspect of life. They believed you are meant to SURVIVE for God, while avoiding all forms of debauchery.